Death's Apprentice
by Abzan342
Summary: AU: When Tidus is injured in a car accident, the Angel of Death Azrael spares his life but with a catch: Tidus must take Azrael's job. After a while, things get worse when Tidus' lover falls ill with a fatal disease and she's at the top of the death list.
1. The Offer

**Death's Apprentice**

_"Make sure to send a lazy man the angel of death." -- Jewish Proverb_

Ten years earlier...

"Hey Ti, come join me over here!" A seven year old Yuna called out to Tidus who was looking for his friend. Tidus looked up suddenly and saw Yuna standing next to a tree, waiting for him. It was a beautiful day outside, and a trip to the park seemed perfect for the two.

"Coming, Yuna!" Tidus ran over to Yuna, joining her in the shade. After he met up with his friend, the two sat lazily on the ground for several minutes.

"Tidus?" Yuna asked quietly, looking down at the lush grass beneath her.

"Yeah, Yuna?"

"Um, have you ever thought about what death might be like?" Yuna inquired, not looking at Tidus directly. Tidus stared at Yuna apprehensively; the last time somebody told him about dying was when his grandfather passed away. Besides, he rarely talked about death with his friends.

"Uh, no. I guess I'll find out eventually 'cause everybody dies, right?" Tidus answered sitting up off the ground.

"Of course, silly. But, I had to ask, that's all." Yuna told him, feeling more comfortable with his response. After all, death was an uneasy subject in conversation. "If I died tomorrow, would you miss me?"

"Sure, I'd hate to lose you, Yuna. If I did, then I'd shoot myself and join you in Heaven where we'd be together." Tidus answered, blushing slightly. Yuna noticed this, and smiled.

"Thank you, that's so sweet." Yuna lightly kissed him on the cheek and stood up. "Hey, enough of this death talk. Come on, let's go play!" She grabbed Tidus by the hand, and the two sped off together into the distance.

The future, ten years later...

It couldn't have been a worse day for Tidus Malerka, star player of the Zanarkand Abes and a huge celebrity throughout Spira. If he didn't show up for his date with Yuna Leonhart, he was screwed. The two were finally going to see each other again after being separated for about ten years. Not long after the friends spent time in the park, Yuna had moved away and hadn't see Tidus for a long time. Luckily, Tidus was going to meet up with Yuna through her brother and a date was scheduled between the two of them.

"Shit, I'm so frickin' late! Yuna's going to kill me! I can win any game in blitzball, but I can never show up on time to a date!" Tidus said out loud inside his car. He was on the way to the restaurant where he'd meet Yuna. He had fifteen minutes to go, but with all the cars and people around him it would take at least half an hour.

"So this is what I get when I haven't seen Yuna in over ten years; plenty of traffic!" Tidus thought out loud, driving through the busy streets of Zanarkand. Since he was late, Tidus figured he'd drive a little faster than normal to get to his date on time. Unfortunately, this seemingly inconsequential decision would be the biggest mistake of his life.

It all happened within a matter of seconds. Tidus was rambling to himself so much that he ran a red light and hit another car off to his left. Moments later, a large SUV rammed into Tidus's left side, breaking nearly every bone in his body. A massive pain entered his skull, and darkness overtook him. Scenes of his life passed through his eyes: playing with Yuna in the park, hearing his mom lost her battle with cancer, and finally pulling off the Jecht Shot that his father bullied him into doing.

"No...can't...happen yet...Yuna..." Tidus blacked out, not hearing the sirens and people surrounding his car.

Unseen by human eyes a tall figure in a black cloak watched as Tidus's lifeless body got pulled out of his totaled car. The figure smiled and thought "Hmm...he's perfect. One of these days he'll thank me for letting him have this job. He'll be spared." The figure vanished, leaving Tidus in the care of the paramedics as they sped him to the hospital, not knowing a certain someone would keep him alive after the fatal accident.

Tidus felt like his eyes weighed over a thousand pounds, and was squinting due to the bright lights above him. He couldn't sit up or move, for he was covered from head to toe in bandages. The last thing he remembered was driving to his date with Yuna. He wasn't even sure if she knew about the accident.

"Yuna..." Tidus croaked weakly, thinking about his friend.

"Ms. Leonhart has already been informed about your accident," said a calm voice. Tidus looked around the room, surprised. He did not expect to see a tall cloaked figure standing across from his bed.

"Who...who are you? Get out!" Tidus whispered, hoping that a nurse or doctor would come in. The mysterious figure just looked at Tidus from underneath his cloak, unflinchingly.

"Make me. That is, if you can get up." The guest answered, leaning back against the bleak white wall. Anger boiled up inside Tidus, annoyed at how the bandages prevented him from beating up this intruder. "Look, I'm here to make you an offer."

The person took off his hood, revealing sleek black hair and unusual silver eyes. An air of immense power and control was given off by the mysterious guest.

"Who...who are you?" Tidus asked again, this time with curiosity, sensing an unearthly presence about the man.

"Well, I go by the name Azrael, but people on earth call me the Angel of Death." He answered, coolly regarding Tidus's shocked expression.

This all hit Tidus like a thunderbolt. First he survives a fatal car accident (even after breaking about everything in his body), and now the Angel of Death had come to him? Nothing seemed to make sense anymore.

"Prove it. Why should I believe you?" Tidus asked quietly, not seeing the grin Azrael had on his face.

"Where to start. First of all, when you were five I sent your dog Fluffy to doggy-heaven...well, it was his time, of course. Then when you were ten I came to your mom on her deathbed and told her it was time to leave. She was pretty upset, after all fighting lung cancer was not easy for her. She's fine in Heaven now, I'll tell her you said hi---"

"Wait!" Tidus called out. This was all too much for him to bear. He now believed Azrael. Very few people knew that Fluffy and his mom had died---but none could give out details such as the ones he just heard. Tidus felt his eyes slowly fill with tears as he remembered his faithful pet and mother.

"Do you believe me now?" Azrael asked Tidus, who was still distraught from the information he had just heard.

"I do...but there's something I don't get. Why did you spare me?" Tidus asked curiously, ridding his head of the good times spent with his two loved ones.

"Well, I have a favor to ask of you. It'll cost you, but I'll prevent you from dying if you accept." Azrael told him, grinning slightly.

"Ask away." Tidus was willing to do anything to avoid death---that is, until he aged and it was his time. The last time he thought he was going to die was when his mom passed; he didn't want to head off in that direction once more.

"I'd like for you to take my job. You know, take over for me." Azrael proposed, indifferently. Tidus stared at him, confused by the offer.

"Excuse me? For a second there I thought you wanted me to become the

Angel of---"

"---Death, yeah. No joke." Azrael replied.

"What would I have to do?" Tidus asked curiously. Azrael's gray eyes looked down upon Tidus with great interest.

"Oh, send people to Heaven or Hell. That's the gist of it. And only those who are about to be taken away can see you." Azrael answered, pacing around the room. Tidus looked at him apprehensively.

"What's the catch?" Tidus asked suspicious of the job offer. Azrael stopped pacing and looked at him.

"Well, you'll be the Angel of Death until I feel you have done enough to live again. Work hard and I'll give you your life back." Azrael folded his arms casually across his chest, waiting for Tidus' response.

"Where will you be when I have the job?" Tidus asked curiously.

"Oh, exploring. I've been all over the world, but not from a human's point of view. So, do we have a deal?" Azrael asked hopefully. Tidus thought for a few moments. If he became the Angel of Death and pleased Azrael then he'd avoid death and it would be like the accident had never happened. However, he'd be separated from Yuna and his friends until the role was finished. A few minutes later, Tidus came up with his answer.

"I'll do it."

Azrael touched the top of Tidus's bandaged head, and a bright light filled the room. Before he knew it, Tidus was in a ghost-like form and standing next to Azrael. His real body was still in the bandages, unconscious.

"I've put you in a coma for the time being. Now come with me; I'll take you to your first mission."


	2. Zephyr and the Deathseeker

_Chapter 2: Deathseeker and the President_

_"I only remember two kisses---the first and the last.  
The first with my love and the last, with death.  
The first brought happiness and the last relief!"  
-Srijit Prabhakaran  
_

Disclaimer: I forgot to put this in the last chapter, but oh well. The only character I really own is Azrael---the others all belong to Square Enix...

Before Tidus knew what was going on, Azrael whisked his ghostly form out of his hospital room and over the great city of Zanarkand. It was around midnight, and was a perfect place for those who didn't sleep. Even though it was very late, people were walking around everywhere as if it were the daytime. Tidus was used to this behavior; he felt most alive at night.

"Where are you taking me?" Tidus asked as Azrael was holding on to his arm and flying over the skyscrapers. Azrael grinned with delight at this statement.

"Oh, to a training course to see if you're fit to take my place. If you fail..." Azrael stopped the flying and he and Tidus landed on top of a building. "...Then I'll have to kill you and find another apprentice." Tidus gulped nervously; screwing up was the last thing on his agenda.

"So...why are we here?" Tidus asked curiously. "All the other people are down there. Shouldn't we be---"

"Just watch. It's showtime."

Seconds after Azrael finished speaking, two men followed by another comrade were carrying a blindfolded person entered the top of the building via a door right in front of Tidus and the angel. The blindfolded young man was also gagged, had several bruises on his body, and was struggling to break free from the men. One of the men pushed the victim down on the ground, and took off his blindfold. Silver hair defined a good portion of the three men's appearance, while the victim had sandy blonde hair and nervous looking blue eyes, watering with pain.

"P-please! My company already gave your boss the money---what do you want now?" The victim pleaded, wincing as the largest of the three men kicked him in the ribs.

Tidus immediately recognized the victim as Rufus Shin-ra, President of the Shin-ra Company. Rufus and Tidus' old man used to be great friends years ago, but when Shin-ra became famous Rufus ignored his friend completely. Tidus considered Rufus to be the only fatherly figure he could count on when his dad was pushing him around. But when Rufus left, Tidus felt like he had no where to turn. Tidus felt like a tight fist was clenched over his heart as he saw Rufus for the first time in years; what would the thugs do to him? Besides, Tidus felt powerless since that he was a transparent figure without the ability to fight back or call for help. Lastly, even if Rufus tried to run away, his plan would fail. Just recently Rufus was in an accident and was confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his days.

"Shut up, ass wipe! Consider yourself lucky that we haven't killed you yet. Kadaj, should we finish him off now or later?" The man asked his boss with deep interest. Kadaj put a hand to his chin, deciding on the poor man's fate.

"Hm, Yazzu, what do you propose we do to him?" Kadaj asked curiously to the other of the criminals.

"Intoggerate him first, and then kill him." Yazzu answered readying his gun. The third man walked over to the victim, pacing around him.

"Do you know who we are?" The man asked with suspicion at the victim.

"You three are the motorcycle bandits, and also work for an underground mafia and do drug deals and---"

"That's enough. Loz, I'll ask the questions from now on. Now, where were we..." Kadaj took out a long, double-bladed katana from under his black cloak. "Ah, yes, asking President Rufus Shin-ra questions about his company or else..." Kadaj held the katana up to Rufus' neck. "...he gets sliced and diced."

"I-I'll answer anything you want. J-just don't kill me!" Rufus pleaded once more.

"In that case, here's your question: You boasted on one occasion that your company discovered a remedy for a rare disease known as the 'Geo-Stigma.' Where is the antidote?" Kadaj asked moving the blade of the katana closer to Rufus' throat.

"It's...it's at Shin-ra Labs in downtown Zanarkand. If you need some then I'll gladly give you three---" Kadaj grabbed Rufus' shirt, his face several centimeters away from Shin-ra's.

"Of course we wanted it, bitch. What are you, an air head?" Kadaj pushed Rufus down on the ground again.

"Gimme that. Things will move faster this way." Kadaj grabbed Yazzu's gun and aimed at Rufus' head. Tidus had a strong urge to run over there and kill Kadaj and his cronies, but he remained rooted to the spot. Azrael only watched on, a slight smirk on his face. Tidus figured that he was immune to see people dying because it was his job to send them to heaven or hell.

"Here's your final question: There is a rival mafia leader working underground to spread the Geo-Stigma to his enemies, and he goes by the codename 'Zephyr,' and we know you've been doing some secret business with him. What's his true identidy?" Kadaj asked quietly, with Yazzu and Loz looking on.

"I---I don't know his real identity, honestly!" Rufus whimpered in panic, staring at the gun in Kadaj's hand. Kadaj tightened the grip on Yazzu's gun even more.

"Bullshit." Kadaj aimed at Rufus' foot and fired. The loud bang was followed by Rufus' scream in pain and agony. "So...I'll ask you again: What is 'Zephyr's' real identity? And next time, I won't miss."

"Okay...I-I know somebody who knows Zephyr's real name...Zephyr never gave me his true identity." Shin-ra spoke so softly that Tidus didn't get to hear the rest of the sentence. Kadaj stood up, looking at Rufus with a strange look in his eye.

"Excellent. It has been a pleasure doing business with you." Kadaj answered quietly. The gun fired once more, this time Rufus did not scream out in terror. The silver bullet piercing Rufus' skull, killing him instantly. Tidus' blood turned cold; he couldn't believe that this all happened within seconds. Kadaj stood up and blew the top of his smoking gun, kicking Rufus' body roughly in the side.

"Yazzu, Loz, follow me. We have to ask our brother who this Zephyr person truly is." Kadaj then walked away, leaving Rufus' body behind with Yazzu and Loz right behind.

Tidus ran up to Rufus' dead body, hoping that no tears would come out in front of Azrael. He tried to touch Rufus' shoulder, but his hand passed right through.

"Try grabbing into his body." Azrael suggested. Tidus stared at him in disbelief.

"Grabbing? What is there to grab? He's dead, dammit!" Tidus shouted out to Azrael in anger. But without even thinking, Tidus suddenly grabbed into Rufus' lifeless body and to his surprise he was holding the ghostly form of the president by his collar. Rufus looked up at Tidus and Azrael in deep confusion.

"You can do the talking." Told Azrael, walking away to the edge of the building.

"T-Tidus! What are you doing here? What am _I _doing here? And who is---"

"That's Azrael. And you're...um..." Tidus looked to Rufus' corpse, while the ghostly form was staring at Tidus frantically. After several moments, Tidus began to speak again. "Rufus, you're dead."

"I---what? This has to be a dream!" Rufus answered confused about the whole ordeal.

"I'm sorry, but it's true." Tidus picked up Rufus' light ghost and helped him stand up. Rufus looked at his real body in horror.

"What happened to me?" Rufus asked quietly. Tidus looked at his feet, nervously while Azrael watched him from a distance.

"Kadaj's gang shot you to death. I wanted to help, but there was nothing I could do. I'm sorry." Tidus answered guiltily.

"Don't worry about it. Just...just take me to wherever I'm suppossed to go now. I guess that since this is my time, I'll experience what I couldn't here on this planet." (A/N: Is it just me, or did that sound really corny?)

Azrael walked over to Tidus and Rufus after their conversation finished. He felt that Tidus handed himself pretty well when dealing with someone who just died and not letting his emotions getting out of hand.

"Congrats, Tidus, you passed." Azrael congratulated as he shook his apprentice's hand. "I've interviewed people for quite a while to take my job and so far you're the only one who has not started bawling when a friend or family member died who they had to take away." Tidus and Rufus stared at Azrael with wonder.

"Um, okay..." Tidus started apprehensively.

"Actually, that could change in a little while or so, nevertheless you're okay! And that's all that matters for now." Azrael finished, handing Tidus a long, thin object and a black notebook.

"Hey, what are those for?" Tidus asked curiously, with Rufus looking on. Because Rufus was experiencing things that the average person would not---or might, experience in their lifetime, he had forgotten about the incident with Kadaj.

"I call _this_ the 'Deathseeker' (Azrael handed him the staff), and this is my---actually _your _Death List. Anyways, about the staff. You don't kill people with it, but you can warp the dead to Heaven or Hell---it depends on if they were naughty, of course. Other than that, you can warp to basically anywhere you'd like at any time. For now, I don't think you'd be able to help those around the world, so I'm gonna let you stay in Zanarkand for the time being."

"And the Death List?" Tidus asked, opening up the book curiously.

"I was getting to that. Each time someone new appears on the list, your staff will glow and stuff. After you send that person to Heaven/Hell, you basically write their name down and how they died. Of course, the list is very long for a small notebook, but you'll _never _run out of room."

After hearing the Deathseeker's abilities and the Death List's functions from Azrael, Tidus examined the staff more closely. The staff came up to about Tidus' shoulder from the ground, and its black color was from the ebony wood used to create it. Vibrant colors of blue and crimson adorned the staff in a flame-like pattern, and there were words in a foreign language engraved in white as well.

"Wow...this is, well...I didn't expect this kinda thing to happen to me." Tidus told Azrael in awe.

"I should be off now." Rufus brought up slightly impatient. Tidus and Azrael looked up at him; they had nearly forgotten that he was still there.

"Right. Let's go. Um...Azrael?" Tidus asked confused. "How...how do I send Rufus, um..."

"To Heaven? I'll show you." Azrael used his finger to point an invisible arrow upward. "Do that except with you staff. That's pretty much it. Hell's the same thing, except the arrow points down."

"Okay, then." Tidus followed what Azrael showed him and a portal emitting a white light appeared. Rufus walked in, and said to Tidus quietly,

_"Thank you."_

Tidus mouthed, 'Your welcome,' and watched the portal close behind Rufus. The portal closed shut, and Tidus turned to face Azrael once more.

"Well, I should get going." Azrael replied beginning to walk away.

"But...but I don't even know how to transport myself and stuff! How will I know?" Tidus asked hoping for an answer.

"Look, Ti. When you're the Angel of Death, you've got to figure stuff out all on your own. But if you need to reach me, then summon me using your staff." Suddenly, Azrael's body was illuminated with light and he began to float in the thin air.

"I can't even do that, either! Hey, come back!" Tidus called out; Azrael's body had just disappeared. "Man, this job is gonna really suck..."

A/N: Wow, that chapter took me almost a week to write...(i mean, i also have schoolwork and stuff so i can't work on this all the time). Anyways, at first I only wanted this chapter to be focused on Kadaj, Yazzu, and Loz's plot involving Zephyr (it'll be really important later) but it ended up being slightly different in the end. I'll try to be more careful next time.

-Abzanguinaut342


	3. Life Moves On

_Chapter 3: Life Moves On_

"_His wings are gray and trailing, _

_Azrael, Angel of Death, _

_And yet the souls that Azrael brings _

_Across the dark and cold, _

_Look up beneath those folded wings, _

_And find them lined with gold"_

_-Robert Gilbert Welsh_

"Think he'll ever wake up?"

"I can't say; he's been out for over a week." Two voices in Tidus' hospital room were deciding if their friend would ever wake up or not, and both had mixed feelings about his fate.

"You're right. But he'll wake up, I'm sure of it!" protested Rikku Bhedal, a good friend of Tidus who was sitting in a chair next to his comatose body. With Rikku's upbeat, outgoing personality, you would have thought she was a hyper-active electric energy ball.

"I don't know, Rik. He'd better wake up." Rikku and Tidus' friend Squall Leonhart answered. Squall and Tidus were best friends in high school and had gotten back together not long after Tidus' accident. He ran his hand through his dark brown hair, scanning the doorway for his sister to arrive. "Man, I hope Yuna shows up soon."

Rikku and Squall were also first cousins, and it was a weird coincidence that they were best friends with Tidus at the same time. However, personality-wise both were polar opposites; Rikku had her bubbly and energetic personality while Squall was more cool and collected, not to mention mature.

"Yeah, she said she'd be, like here ten minutes ago---"

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" An exhausted Yuna called out, stepping into the hospital room.

_"U mdert syhhisdit."_ Rikku answered after seeing Yuna come in.

Yuna had changed a great deal the last time Tidus last saw her. Her coffee colored hair was not in pigtails like how Tidus used to see it, but medium in length so that it went past her ears. When Yuna and Tidus first met he used to make fun of her for her bicolored eyes, but later on he'd protect her from kids who'd tease her about them. They had continued to stay friends ever since.

"Well, somebody finally decided to show up!" Squall brought up impatiently. "I guess twin sisters can be that way."

"Cut it out, Squall!" Yuna answered defensively. "Rikku, am I really that late?"

"You betcha. But at least you're here, so you can see Tidus!" Yuna walked quickly over to the bed and stopped when she saw Tidus in bandages. She didn't expect the accident to be this bad. Seeing Yuna's upset expression, Rikku decided to leave her at peace.

"Uhhh...hey Yunie! Squall and I are gonna go to Food Unit in town, this hospital food really bugs me...right, Squall?" Rikku asked grabbing Squall's arm and leading him out of the room. "We'll bring back some stuff in half an hour or so!"

"Uh, yeah, Yuna! Catch you later!" Yuna didn't get to see the confused look on Squall's face; she was too busy staring at Tidus with deep sadness.

_Meanwhile..._

For the past eight hours, Tidus had been doing nothing but walking around aimlessly through the streets of Zanarkand, unseen by human eyes. Since that he didn't know how to teleport or float around like Azrael, Tidus had to walk everywhere until his Death List summoned him elsewhere. He was called to tend to the dead seven times already, and was sick of sending people to heaven or hell even though it was his first day on the job.

A bit after Tidus had his first mission with Rufus Shin-Ra, Azrael sent him a black cloak and matching gloves and boots to make him look more like the Angel of Death. Azrael must have felt that peole who were dying would not believe that Tidus was sending them to heaven or hell in a blitzball uniform.

_"I sure hate life."_ Tidus said to himself, avoiding people in the streets, holding the Deathseeker in his right hand and the Death List on his left. _"That is, if I even have one anymore."_ He didn't know what to do, and was still unsure why he accepted Azrael's offer. For a while, he thought he should have died. Ever since Tidus became a famous blitzball star he felt like he was at the top of the world. The attention was great at first until Tidus realized that everyone thought he was a showoff. It was as if he had worked hard to become a blitzball star for nothing. Tidus walked on farther, and eventually found himself in front of the Zanarkand Hospital where his unconscious body was. With nothing better to do, he decided to venture on in and visit himself for the time being.

It didn't take long for Tidus to get to his room, and he certainly did not expect for Yuna to be sitting by the side of his bed, crying softly.

"Yu...Yuna!" Tidus called out, but Yuna couldn't hear him. He knew it was pointless to try again, since that he was half-dead and she was still alive. Tidus tried to touch her with his gloved hand but it simply passed through Yuna's shoulder. If Tidus had to stay as the Angel of Death for a long time then he would be forced to watch Yuna do everything without him.

"Well, well, well." Azrael was standing opposite of Tidus' bed, looking smug. Tidus jumped up several feet; he thought Azrael was on vacation.

"H-hey! What are you doing here?" Tidus asked impatiently, turning around to see Azrael's sneering face. "Aren't you suppossed to be touring the world by now?"

"I decided to visit for the heck of it." Azrael answered, fiddling with the silver ankh around his neck. "So, you've come to visit your ex. girlfriend. No wonder she's crying her eyes out; you made her upset by leaving her."

_"She is not my ex. girlfriend!_" Tidus protested, his blood boiling. "Don't you ever say that again!"

"Hm, whatever. Oh look, we have another visitor." Azrael gestured his head in the direction of the doorway. Tidus' old man, Jecht, entered the room. Tidus grimaced slightly at the sight of him. He hated everything about him, from his scruffy brown beard to the boots he was wearing.

"What's he doing here?" Tidus asked Azrael with malice. "You didn't bring him here, did you?"

"I don't have the foggiest idea. Just watch and enjoy the show." Tidus focused his attention back on Jecht and Yuna, who quickly wiped her eyes and looked up at the middle-aged man.

"Sir...Sir Jecht! I didn't expect you!" Yuna told surprised at the famous blitzball star's appearance.

"I didn't think I'd see you here, Yuna. Hey, how's Braska, by the way?" Jecht asked, referring to Yuna's father.

"The same, as usual. Ever since my mother died he hasn't left our house much."

"Heh, the same old Braska; affected by anything." Jecht's attention then focused on his unconscious son's. Just then, Yuna began to cough hard. Jecht walked over to her and patted her on the back gently.

"Easy, there. Did you drink something funny?" A short while later, Yuna stopped hacking.

"No, this has been going on all week. I came here to see the doctor, and then heard that Tidus was here; I thought I'd come visit for the time being."

"What did the kid to this time? It must've been pretty stupid."

"Tidus was in a car accident, Sir Jecht. He has been out for about a week." Yuna's face became somber once more, her face looking at Jecht's with deep sorrow. "I...I don't know what's going to happen to him!"

"Don't worry, he's my son; the kid can get out of anything." Jecht answered, trying to console Yuna into believing everything would be better.

_"Shut up, Dad!" _Tidus thought angrily, his hands clenched. _"You don't know anything!"_

Jecht turned to leave. "Well, I just thought I'd stop in for a bit. And if he wakes up..." For a second there, Tidus thought his dad was going to say something meaningful for once, "Tell him that he owes me twenty bucks and a beer."

_"What?" _Tidus said out loud, watching Jecht as he walked out of the room. "That dick nosed, drunk-ass bastard..."

"That went well." Azrael told Tidus, amused. "Hey, you've got another place to go to." Azrael pointed at Tidus' staff, which was glowing brightly. Tidus snapped out of his 'I-hate-Jecht' trance and immediately took out of his Death List. He opened up the book to the latest entry, and saw two names written in white there. The names were slowly but surely fading to a light gray.

Hm..._Lenne Darkanzan and Shuyin Abizcelt, car accident." _Tidus read from his book. "Interesting names. Say, Azrael, why are the names fading?"

"I'm glad you asked. It means that they're not dead yet. By the time their names turn black, then they're gone for good. If a name started off as white and did not fade for a long time, then that person probably has some fatal disease. However, if the names started off black, then whoever has that name died instantly. Capiche?"

"Yeah, I think I get it." Tidus' body began to glow white. "I guess I'm off."

"Ciao, I'll see you soon." Azrael disappeared with a swish of his black cloak.

Seconds later, Tidus disappeared as well, heading off to find Lenne and Shuyin.

A/N: oO...Wow, I'm finally done. I started this chapter about a day after I finished the second, and I'm still surprised that I managed to finish within three days of the last update. Oh well. Expect me to update the fourth chapter within a week or so. Lastly, please R&R! I'm desperate, here!

-Abzanguinaut342

_Note:_

DarkanzanZanarkand in a different order

AbizceltBlitzace

_U mdert syhhisdit_I stand corrected


	4. His Love for Her

_Chapter 4: His Love for Her_

"_The angel of death has been abroad throughout the land; _

_You may almost hear the beating of his wings."_

_-John Bright _

About ten miles away from the Zanarkand Hospital, there could be at least eight police cars seen with several ambulances at the side of a highway. Police officers had the area surrounded with tape, so no one could see what had happened. In the center of the area surrounded by medics and officers, were two bodies who had just been dragged from the inside of a totalled car. Paramedics were trying everything they could to revive the couple, but nothing worked.

Several minutes after Tidus' Death List summoned him, he reached the spot where Lenne Darkanzan and Shuyin Abizcelt were. Tidus was immediately shocked by the couple's appearance; Lenne and Shuyin's arms and legs were arranged in an odd fashion and they were bruised and bloody all over. Paramedics were surrounding them trying to do all they could to get the two back to life. Both had their eyes closed, and they looked like they had fallen from a great height and would not get up.

Before he could fathom what was going on, Tidus looked again into his Death List. Both Lenne and Shuyin's names were black. At that exact moment, the paramedics stopped trying to bring back the couple; it was too late.

"They're gone. There was nothing I could do, I'm sorry." The head paramedic explained to his co-workers, who looked grimly at the others. "Here, lets get these two into body bags." As the paramedics prepared the body bags, Tidus walked over to Lenne and Shuyin and grabbed his hands into their bodies, pulling their ghostly forms out. Tidus set the forms down, and Lenne and Shuyin's ghosts stood up, looking at Tidus with wonder.

"What...what happened?" Lenne asked quietly staring at her transparent arms trying to comprehend what had just occured. Shuyin was also staring at himself, pondering the same idea.

"Both of you just died in an accident." Tidus answered grimly, not noticing the horrified expression on Shuyin's face. "I'm sorry, there was nothing I could do."

It took Lenne and Shuyin a few minutes to understand their situation and how it all happened. But one thing was certain; they would never see their friends or family again. They had each other, but everything would be different from now on.

"Dead...?" Shuyin asked, not looking at Tidus directly in the face. "And, who are you?"

"I'm the Angel of Death, but you can call me Tidus. Well, I'm actually the real angel's apprentice; the real guy is on vacation. You could say that I've come to take you two away." Tidus answered taking out his Death List.

"Away? To heaven?" Lenne asked, tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Will Shuyin be with me?" Lenne tried to put her arm around Shuyin's shoulders, but her arm merely faded through her lover's body.

"That's my job. And I'll do it in just a sec---" Tidus stopped midway through his sentence; he noticed something very odd written in the Death List. Besides names appearing there, the cause of death was there also. Written next to Lenne's name in black was the word _murder, _and next to Shuyin's name was _suicide. _Tidus had expected the term 'accident' to be next to the names, but not suicide or murder.

"Listen, Shuyin." Tidus closed up the Death List and looked at Shuyin with a stern expression on his face. "Could I talk to you for a sec? It won't take too long."

Shuyin looked at Lenne apprehensively, but instead she nodded in agreement. Tidus took Shuyin over to the other side of the highway, away from Lenne's ghost and hers and Shuyin's real bodies, which were being loaded into an ambulance.

"Shuyin..." Tidus folded his arms, while Shuyin looked nervously at the angel. "I have this notebook known as the Death List, and every person who has died and the cause of their death are written there."

"Go on." Shuyin answered, hoping Tidus would get to the point.

"It was written there that Lenne was murdered, and you committed suicide. I thought you two died in a car accident, not what I just told you." Tidus looked at Shuyin with an even more serious expression on his tanned face. "Explain."

For a moment there, Shuyin said nothing. Instead he was shaking and staring at his feet; if his ghostly form had color, then his face would be pale.

"I...okay." Shuyin stared back at Tidus. "Lenne was murdered, and I killed her."

Tidus felt as if his insides turned cold; he didn't realize that the outcome of the accident was really murder.

"Shuyin, because you murdered her I should send you to hell, it's in the rules of the---"

"Okay! I didn't stab her or anything, both of us died in the accident! But the accident was on purpose." Shuyin answered, still not looking at the angel directly.

"What do you mean?"

"I...I on purposely crashed our car. It's all my fault, but I can explain. You see, I was not mad at Lenne for anything. It's just that, a few weeks ago, I got a call from the doctor saying that Lenne was diagnosed with a rare disease; the Geo-Stigma. Like I said, it's really rare, but somehow there have been many cases lately and Lenne got it. I couldn't bear to tell her the truth; after all, Geo-Stigma patients last only about half a year. I was devastated that this happened to Lenne. So instead of watching her die while I suffered alongside her, I decided to take her life away. Look, I knew what I was going to do was crazy and wrong, but then I decided to kill myself with her so we'd be together forever in the afterlife."

"So, you killed yourself and Lenne on purpose so she wouldn't have to go through the Geo-Stigma." Tidus answered, trying to remember everything Shuyin told him.

"Pretty much." For the first time in over ten minutes, Shuyin looked back into Tidus' face. This time Tidus noticed a tear on Shuyin's cheek. "It's just that...have you ever loved someone so much that you'd protect them from anything, but if they found out they'd hate you forever? Even at the risk of your own life? I would, and that's why I caused the accident."

Tidus thought about Shuyin's statement for a bit. Would he sacrifice Yuna Leonhart, in order to prevent her from suffering from a terrible fate? He didn't know what to believe anymore.

"Listen." Tidus took out the Deathseeker, feeling the mahogany wood in his left hand. "I'll make you a deal. I won't send you to hell, but I won't send you to heaven either."

"I'm following. But what's the catch?" Shuyin asked suspiciously.

"Instead I'll send you to Purgatory. It's the boundary between heaven and hell. Purgatory is not as great as heaven, nor it is evil as hell. I'm afraid they wouldn't accept you in heaven with the murder." Shuyin looked at Tidus guiltily. "But the two of you will be together for an eternity."

"I...I don't know what to say. This isn't really necessary at all..."

"Don't mention it. One thing, though." Tidus moved closer to Shuyin. "Don't tell Lenne _why _you're not going to heaven, okay?"

"I'll keep that secret with me to the grave. Wait, like that'll ever work." Shuyin grinned; at least he got to talk to someone about his troubles.

"Shuyin! What's taking so long?" Lenne called out to her lover impatiently. "I've been waiting her for fifteen minutes or so!"

"Coming!" Before Shuyin ran off, he looked at Tidus once more. "By the way, _thanks._ Since that I'm leaving earth, I guess there' s nothing I can do for you."

"Hey, don't worry about it." Tidus walked over to Lenne and Shuyin, taking out the Deathseeker. The ambulance and the paramedics were long gone from the scene; even Shuyin's wrecked car had been taken away.

"Ready?" Tidus asked, holding the Deathseeker in his right hand. "Let's go, then."

Tidus created a flat arrow with his staff, and a portal appeared next to him.

"In you go, then." Nervously, Shuyin and Lenne began to walk in, but stopped at the entrance. They waved goodbye a final time, and disappeared for good into the bright light.

_"That went well." _Tidus thought to himself, opening up the Death List once more. A new name had appeared there, this time in white. However, it was very slowly fading to a light gray. _"Paine Crimson, drug overdose." _

_In the heart of Zanarkand, around midnight..._

Far away from the highway where Tidus sent off Lenne and Shuyin, a three room flat could be found in the center of Zanarkand. It was not bright with activity like the rest of the metropolis, but dark and foreboding with mystery. The flat's owner was lying on the floor of the apartment, holding a large, three quarters full empty bottle of vodka in her hand. She had been drinking for almost an hour nonstop. Objects were thrown around the room everywhere; it was as if a tornado hit the place. The woman was nearly unconscious, but she managed to get some words out.

"Yevon...somebody...help me..." It wouldn't be long before the Angel of Death paid her a visit.


	5. The Real Deal

_Chapter 5: The Real Deal_

_"I am the angel of death. The time of purification is at hand."_

_-Azrael_

**_Disclaimer:_ **If I owned Yuna, Tidus, Squall, Paine, etc...all those FF characters, I'd be rich right now. But I'm not, so whatever.

A/N: Wow, I'm actually back in business! I must apologize for the wait; I had finals to study for and everything. Other than that, this is a really important chapter in Death's Apprentice and a major twist will be revealed...well, maybe not really.

-Abzanguinaut342

About fifteen minutes after Tidus' rendezvous with Lenne and Shuyin, he eventually found Paine Crimson's three room flat. The flat was one of the apartments in a five-story building, and the street where the place was situated was dark as well.

_"Man, it looks pretty dark around here." _Tidus thought to himself, his hand clenched onto the Deathseeker tightly. _"And to think I'm still in Zanarkand. This better be the right place." _The Death List didn't specify where the scene of the crime/suicide/other death-related stuff, so most of Tidus' job was figuring out where everything was.

Tidus had expected police cars and an ambulance here on the dark street, but no one was around; he figured that the person on the list still had a long time to live. Glancing up and down the street to see if there was any activity, but there was none. Reluctantly, Tidus strode up the building's stone steps and passed right through the door.

Just like the outside, the inside of 423 Jerehgert Avenue was not much to look at either. An elevator with a sign having 'broken, do not use' was to Tidus' left, and in front of him was a flight of stairs. All the lights were off in the building; Tidus figured that the people here (except for Paine) were out partying in Zanarkand. Not sure where Paine's room was, Tidus looked at the directory that was on the wall to his right.

"Hm...Paine Crimson, Room 17A, Fifth Floor." Tidus said out loud, immediately heading for the stairs. He was just about to go up when he noticed the tenant's mailboxes. All of them were empty, except one which was overflowing with mail. Without looking, Tidus guessed it was Paine's. After all, if she was going to die due to drugs, she was most likely going through a rough time. People like her wouldn't check their mail if they were depressed.

After walking up five flights of steps, Tidus eventually reached Paine's room. Nervous of what might happened if he went inside, Tidus carefully passed into the room. He had expected something bad, but not as bad as what he was looking at.

If there was an award for the most unclean room, Paine would have won and swept the board off the other contestants. Heck, she would have won an international competition for the messiest room. Three large half-filled bottles of vodka were sitting on a small table, with at least ten shot glasses on the table as well. A large fridge was to the left of the table, and Tidus imagined there was even more vodka instead of real food.

A faint noise got Tidus' attention. He looked up, wondering where the noise came from.

"Hello? Anyone there?" Tidus called out heading over to an open door right across from him. Inside was a bedroom, and he found Paine lying on a small cot holding another bottle.

"Uhhhh..." Paine cried out trying to drink from the empty bottle. "Who are you?"

"The name's Tidus. Um, this is some room you've got here."

"Thanks, amigo. Bourbon?" Paine slurred, gesturing the bottle at Tidus.

"I really can't right now. So, um, what happened here?" Tidus asked, leaning against a wall casually. It took a few moments for Paine to get all the details out, especially since she was drunk.

"Uh, from what I remember...I kinda came back from a party and I drank too much bourbon and vodka...yeah, that's how it went..." Paine slurred, dropping the bottle on the ground. "But I usually don't drink too much of this stuff."

Tidus checked the Death List once again. Paine's name was now turning from a light gray to a dark one; she was running out of time.

"You don't? Why'd you start now?" Tidus questioned curiously.

"Well, my boyfriend kinda dumped me even though he wouldn't say why and I got fired from my job. To keep my mind off things I went to a party and drank my heart out."

"That makes sense." Tidus answered, taking his Death List out. "Paine, I've got something important to tell you."

"Ask away, Mister Blurry..." Tidus gulped; Paine was now losing her vision and getting closer to her demise.

"Look, I'm not just any random person; I'm the Angel of Death." Tidus explained hastily. "Well, the _substitute _Angel of Death to be exact. And according to my Death List, you're life is fading away fairly quickly."

For a moment there, Paine said nothing. Instead her crimson eyes stared back without any emotion.

"What, I'm gonna die, already? Did I not get the right brand of Bourbon or something crazy like that?"

"Nope, you drank too much alcohol. But there's still time. You might just be saved."

"Saved? I should be dead right now---after all, my ex dumped me and I have no job anymore. What else can I do?" Paine asked, her glassy red eyes trying to keep focus on Tidus. "Hey, you're the Death Angel. You're already dead, right? Why would you save someone you don't know?"

Tidus thought for a moment. He really only knew Yuna Leonhart from his childhood, and he had forgotten most of his memories from that time. One of the only reasons why he was doing Azrael's job was so he could see Yuna again---and to also be the Zanarkand Abes star once more.

"Because...I'm doing this because I want to see my childhood friend once more. After I complete the real Angel of Death's missions, he might let me off the hook."

"Hm, somebody has a crush..." Paine teased still half drunk, with Tidus looking at her malevolently.

"Look, I don't do this very often, and this may be your one chance to live your life again. After all, life on this planet only comes once." Tidus answered trying to figure out how to keep Paine alive.

"Yeah, but what's the point? I've already lost everything."

"But it's too early for you to die; you can still save yourself." said Tidus, trying to convince her. "Can you do it?"

"Do what? Save myself by committing suicide quicker?"

"Nope. My body is transparent, so I can't call 911 for you, but you can. You'd better have enough strength. Hey---"

Tidus felt an odd ringing in his ears. The next thing he knew he could hear a small but familiar voice could be heard.

_"Tidus, meet me at the Flaming Sailor restaurant in downtown Zanarkand. Be quick and don't ask why I'm not on vacation; this is really urgent." _Ringed Azrael's voice so that Paine could not hear anything. Tidus looked up with shock; he would have to hurry with Paine.

Paine looked down at the broken bottle of 'Fabulous Nova Crystalline Bourbon;' did she really want to end her life now, or live and survive for another day? Reluctantly, Paine reached her hand over to the cellphone on a nearby nightstand, and managed to diall 911 but with great difficulty.

"Uhhhhh..." Just as Paine dialed for an ambuance, she passed out.

"No!" Tidus ran over to the phone and spoke into it loudly, "Hey, I've got a drunken girl here at 423 Jerehgert Avenue, Fifth Floor Apartment 17A---please, come quickly! The girl doesn't have much time left!"

"Right away, sir. May we have your name for further questioning?" But it was too late; Tidus jumped (literally!) out of Paine's window elsewhere. As sirens could be heard in the background of her apartment, Paine briefly opened her eyes.

"Thank you, guardian angel."

_Meanwhile, at the Zanarkand Hospital..._

Yuna was seen in a long white medical coat, awaiting the news her doctor had for her. She was kept in a small room, and had been waiting for about half an hour for her doctor to show. But within time, Dr. Clan Dumeijike showed up, and had a grim look on his face.

"Miss Yuna, we need talk..."

"About...about what, Dr. Dumeijike?" Yuna asked nervously, her hands clenched around her coat.

"Your condition. Please, sit down." Dumeijike gestured with his clipboard a nearby chair and Yuna immediately sat down, preparing for the worst.

_The Flaming Sailor, ten minutes after the whole ordeal with Paine_

The minute after Tidus jumped from Paine's building, he sprinted all the way down to the Flaming Sailor, which was a good ten minutes away in downtown Zanarkand. Upon his arrival, he burst through the doors and looked around frantically for Azrael. He found him sitting at an empty booth, not seen by the restaurants workers or customers.

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" Tidus called out to Azrael, immediately sitting down. Azrael glared at Tidus.

"Where the hell were you? I've been waiting for fifteen minutes or so!" Azrael ordered, his voice dripping with menace.

"I had stuff to do. You kinda called me at a bad time." Tidus answered sheepishly. "So, why am I here?"

"There is some stuff I'd like to discuss. It won't take up too much time."

"Ask away, then." Answered Tidus casually.

"Okay, then. First thing's first, why'd you let Paine live?" Azrael asked suspiciously.

"What? I can't decide whether people live or not?" Tidus answered nervously. "Is it a rule in the world of life or death?"

"Yep, and a big one too." Azrael folded his arms, and also keeping his face underneath his black hood. "You may have only let one person live, but if you did it too often then chaos would be everywhere around here; it's unorthodox to let people stay alive when they're really supossed to go. Basically, heaven and hell would become off balance, therefore creating tension all over."

"I didn't know. So, what's my punishment? After all, I did break a rule." Tidus asked guiltily.

"I'll let you off the hook for now---" (Tidus looked up with interest)

"Really? Are you---"

_"However, _it won't happen again. If it does then you'll be in serious trouble. And that's final." After he finished, Azrael immediately stood up and walked away like a phantom, silently moving through crowds of people. However, he returned briefly for a mere moment.

"By the way, do check your Death List; it updates every ten minutes or so..." This time Azrael left for good, and Tidus hastily opened up the Death List. Tidus felt like his insides froze over. A new name was added to the list.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> > 

"It's the Geo-Stigma." Dr. Dumeijike answered not looking at an alarmed Yuna in the face. "I'm sorry, but the tests were correct."

Yuna instantly felt faint, this was all happening too quickly. First her mom passed away, then Tidus fell into a coma, and now she was going to die too?

"H-how can you be sure?" Yuna asked quietly.

"Here." Dumeijike reached over and rolled up the sleeve on Yuna's arm. Dark markings in odd formations were there, and to Yuna they were throbbing painfully. "These signs and many medical exams have proven this."

"Do I have long to live?" Yuna felt her eyes welling up with tears as she asked this question. It took Dumeijike a little time to get the answer out properly.

"One month. That's the longest any Geo-Stigma patient's stayed alive."

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>

No_...this can't be!" _Tidus thought to himself staring at a name in white engraved in the Death List. A few silent tears escaped out of his cerulean eyes as he read out loud, _"Yuna Leonhart, Geo-Stigma."_

A/N: I seriously didn't think I'd get all that done in three days...weird. At least Death's Apprentice has a more interesting plot now and Tidus has a mission of his to accomplish...things will _definitely_ be more interesting from now on. Other than that, I felt that I rushed Paine's episode too quickly; well, it's 12:24 in jersey and I have school tomorrow---but it's the last day! Expect chapters to come much quicker in the future.

-Abzan342

Clan DumeijikeAnagram of Medical Junkie

JerehgertZanarkand in Al Bhed

The 'Fabulous Nova Crystalline Bourbon'I couldn't think of a good anagram name, so I figured I'd use the next FF13's title...well, sort of.


	6. Paradox

_Chapter 6: Paradox_

_"Outside the dream world, life can be harsh---even cruel, but it is life." -Auron, FFX_

**Disclaimer: **_The only real people I own are Azrael and the doctor who gave Yuna the bad news last chapter._

* * *

_"I want to die. Anytime in the near future would be great after what I heard about Yuna. I'd be rid of pain and sorrow and would be with Yuna within a month or so. I just feel that there's nothing I can do anymore." _Tidus thought to himself as he silently trudged through the streets of Zanarkand around midnight, rain pouring onto the top of his hood. But he didn't care about the time or his appearance at all; in fact, he had no idea on what he cared about now that Yuna's fate had been decided.

Tidus thought dying was his only option, even though saving Yuna somehow was one too.

But could he do it?

_"Saving her would be an absolute miracle, but is it possible? Heck, after I found out that angels existed I began to believe there was hope out there."_

Without warning, he looked up.

"AZRAEL! What's the meaning of all this!?" He shouted at the top of his lungs, unheard by the Zanarkand citizens despite his loud outburst. "Come show yourself, you coward..."

Nothing happened. Tidus kicked at the concrete sidewalk with the toe of his boot and kept on walking, holding onto the Deathseeker tightly in his left hand. Right now he wanted to throw the staff right out of his hand and into the rain, but Azrael would kill him. Then again, Tidus _did _want to die.

He was just about to chuck the Deathseeker when Azrael appeared abruptly in front of him. Azrael grabbed Tidus' arm and held it tightly, just so nothing would be thrown.

"You gonna throw that?" Azrael asked calmly, his cold gray eyes staring into Tidus' rebellious ones.

"And what if I want to?" Tidus answered, his teeth clenched. "What'll happen, huh? Will I die? Or just get a time out?"

Azrael didn't respond. Instead he slowly removed his hand from Tidus' arm, but did not take his eyes off of his apprentice.

"Dammit. Just come with me and you'll find out." Azrael conjured up a portal and walked in, leaving Tidus behind. For a few moments Tidus remained motionless.

"Listen, you wanna make things right?" Azrael's voice rang out of the portal, causing Tidus to jump.

"What do you---"

"Just come in before I change my mind." Without even thinking, Tidus walked into the portal.

For a good thirty seconds or so, Tidus actually thought he was in Heaven. The whole atmosphere appeared to be perfect and serene, the kind of feeling that was rarely displayed in real life.

Yet Tidus was wrong, for instead of there being the pearly gates of Heaven and St. Peter, who had the job of sending people to their destinations, there was nothing of that sort around him except rolling hills and trees. But in the place of blue skies and clouds up above, to Tidus' sheer amazement he was gazing up at outer space. Planets, the sun and moon, several galaxies, and billions upon billions of bright stars; it was all there.

"Where...where the hell are we!?" Tidus exclaimed loudly, not being able to take his eyes off the galaxy up above.

"Well, we're definitely not in Heaven---saying hell out loud would be a one way ticket there." Azrael answered, brushing locks of his silvery hair out of his eyes.

"Sorry." Tidus muttered sheepishly. "But if we're not in Heaven, then where is this place?"

"Purgatory."

"Purga-wha?"

"Pur-ga-tor-y." Azrael told him slowly. "Don't make me repeat it. It's the boundary between Heaven and Hell. Those who aren't religious fanatics or evil wrongdoers come here. Not all of the luxuries of Heaven are here, but this place is enough for most."

Without warning, Azrael walked down a dirt path in front of him, with Tidus following quickly. The whole time, Tidus couldn't help but admire the beautiful scenery before his eyes.

"After a while, this place gets to be pretty boring." Azrael said to Tidus, who looked at the angel with curiosity.

"Why's that?"

"Because that's all Purgatory is. It's pretty much the same everywhere. But if you're lucky then you might come across a person who is walking by or a comet or meteor flying through space."

"But wouldn't the comet be able to hit---"

"---Ah, Auron. Just the person who I wanted to see."

Due to Tidus' question he didn't even realize that he stopped. In fact, Auron was the last person Tidus expected to meet.

"Sir Auron!" Tidus exclaimed, walking over to him. "I didn't expect you."

"Hmph. You're the last person I'd want to see, too." Auron said roughly.

When Tidus was younger, Auron had been a great friend of his father and Yuna's. But according to them, Auron had passed away due to mysterious circumstances and refused to give out any information.

"In that case, I'll be leaving you two alone for a little bit." Azrael answered, conjuring up another portal and passing through it.

"Wait! How do I leave here?" Tidus called out loudly.

"I'll show you later." Auron answered simply. "Come, walk with me. There are many things that I must discuss with you."

Auron began to pace down the long pathway, and Tidus followed him. For a while neither one of them said a word.

"So...what do you need to talk about?" Tidus asked.

"Yuna and her current situation." Auron told quietly. "You know, I've been watching her for quite sometime now, and watching her condition worsen is becoming unbearable. Right now she's bedridden in the hospital."

Tidus looked away from Auron, not wanting him to see the hurt look on his face.

"Auron, I don't---"

"You love her, don't you?"

He hit a nerve.

"I-I..."

"You don't have to tell me now. It's your business, not mine."

With a sheepish look on his face, he gazed at Auron with a mixture of curiosity and wonder. "You know I'm beginning to run out of ideas for how to save her. I've heard Geo-Stigma patients only last a month or so."

Once again both Tidus and Auron were not saying anything to one another. It wasn't until Tidus decided to break the silence between them.

"Hey Auron," Tidus began, "How did you die?"

Auron straightened his sunglasses, and continued walking.

"Hm, I thought you'd never ask." Auron answered.

"My old man mentioned once that it involved your old job, right? He didn't give out any details after that."

"That's the gist of it, but there's more." The ronin answered. "You know how I used to be a worker at the Shin-ra Company?"

"You were a doctor, right?"

"Correct, however my job was to create medical drugs instead of curing people. A long while ago, I had originally discovered a possible remedy for the Geo-Stigma, a disease that had just broken out at the time."

"But I thought there _was _no cure for---"

"Let me finish." Auron interjected. "As I said earlier, with this remedy I had figured that by making many replications of the drug, I'd be able to save lives. Yet there was a slight problem."

"Go on."

"You see, I wasn't the only doctor in my field discovering possible cures. There was one doctor who did not want my drug to go public. In fact he did not want to find a cure for the Geo-Stigma. He did not believe that my cure would work. He believed that the drug would kill people instead of help them."

"And who was this guy?" Tidus asked curiously, putting his hands in his pockets. "He must have a pretty thick head to believe that the drug wouldn't work."

"His true name is unknown, but he goes by the alias 'Zephyr.'"

"Zephyr? I've heard of that name before."

"Anyways, the day I was to present my remedy for the Geo-Stigma in front of the company president Rufus Shin-ra and his colleagues, Zephyr cornered me. He threatened me to hand the remedy over, or else he'd kill me."

"By looking at your state, it's obvious that he did, right?"

"Exactly. Instead of going to Rufus, I pretended to go back to my office and hid the remedy instead. Yet Zephyr had followed behind. He never did get ahold of the cure, but he strangled me to death after I wouldn't give out the remedy's hiding place."

"So that's how it happened." Tidus answered, slightly taken aback by Auron's confession. "But why didn't my old man tell me what happened?"

"I suppose he didn't want you to know. Due to Zephyr's strength in society your father would get arrested for blaming him, and so would anyone else who tried to speak the truth. You know, I must be the only one who knew who killed me, for Zephyr didn't get caught. Thanks to a powerful team of attorneys as well as a strong authority in Shin-ra Co., Zephyr had gotten off the hook. But even to this day, Zephyr is still searching the perimeter of Shin-ra Co. to find my cure. I'm also the only soul to know where it's hidden; after I died my secret went down with me."

Once again Auron stopped suddenly, pausing to look up at a meteor that had just flown into the sun. He was deep in thought, and Tidus figured he wouldn't say anything until Auron was done pondering.

"There's a catch, however." Auron told Tidus.

"What's that?"

"The whole experience with Zephyr chasing me and my passing somehow caused me to forget the location of the cure. It's somewhere in Shin-ra Co., and if Zephyr gets ahold of it and destroys the cure then no one will be safe."

"Hold on," Tidus said, an invisible lightbulb turning on in his head, "Now I remember where I've heard of Zephyr. After Rufus Shin-ra passed away he was made President of Shin-ra Co. Rufus' killers mentioned him also."

"Hmph." Auron grunted. "So Shin-ra was killed after all. I believe that he had heard of my remedy's cures and tried to search for it himself."

"Zephyr sent out assasins to kill him on the night of my first mission as Azrael's assistant. Shin-ra was the first person I sent to this place." Tidus said.

Both Auron and Tidus looked around Purgatory's landscape quickly.

"One of these days I might run into my old boss. If I see him I'll mention your name. Listen, kid. You should get going. I've kept you here too long."

A portal appeared in front of Tidus.

"That'll take you back to Zanarkand. When you get back there's someone you should talk to. Her name's Tifa Lockheart, and she's not only one of the best bartenders in Zanarkand but she has the ability to talk to ghosts."

"But I'm not even dead!" Tidus said annoyingly.

"It doesn't matter; she has information about Zephyr." Auron motioned Tidus to head into the portal.

Just before Tidus stepped in Auron grabbed his arm roughly.

"Tidus! Remember, the antidote might be the key to Yuna's survival! Speak to Tifa, her bar's called '7th Heaven' in downtown Zanarkand. And don't forget, you must somehow get into Shin-ra Co. and retrieve it!"

At least a million thoughts were running through Tidus' head as Auron spoke. Most of them being about Yuna, Tifa Lockheart, Zephyr, the Geo-Stigma, and Auron's cure.

"Lastly, do not underestimate Zephyr! He is anything but human! That man is not only ambitious but highly dangerous, and he has killed in the past. Just because you are invisible to the human eye does not mean that he won't hunt you down, thanks to Shin-ra's advanced technology."

"I know, Auron, I---"

"Tidus, I made a pact with Yuna's father that I would protect her always. But now that I'm no longer alive, I can only watch her from up above helplessly. You're the only one now who can save her. If you truly love Yuna, you would go to any lengths to save her! _Promise me you will!"_

_"L-love...Yuna!? Do I love her?"_ Tidus thought as Auron begun to push him through the glowing portal.

And without another word, Auron pushed Tidus into the portal, which closed behind him, still gazing at the spot where the portal closed.

_"I _do_ love you, Yuna. I really do."_

* * *

**_A/N: _**Me not updating fast enough is getting ridiculous. But now I think I've found my groove, and I'll continue on with this story. At the same time, though, I'm now prediciting Death's Apprentice to be about fifteen chapters or so, not twenty five like I had originally hoped.

Now that that's out of the way, future chapters (that is, if I can update fast enough) will be even more interesting from now on, now that Tidus' got a mission to do.


End file.
